MoHUA launches a series of incentives under Affordable Rental Housing Complexes scheme
Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has come up with a series of incentives including free FAR, free of cost trunk infrastructure facilities, besides concessional finance of the project under its scheme for Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHC) creation for the poor and urban migrants under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U), informed the Minister of State(I/C), Hardeep S. Puri while addressing a webinar session on the occasion of the launch of ARHC web portal, its guidebook, and the guidelines.
He said, the initiative is aimed at providing dignified affordable living spaces to the urban migrants and poor. The scheme also includes industrial and construction workers along with workers engaged in educational, health and hospitality institutions.
The ministry has framed ARHC scheme after a series of consultation with the concerned departments and central ministries and the stakeholders from states and UTs. To provide support in the implementation of ARHCs, a knowledge pack has also been devised. According to Puri, a win-win for all, the scheme will also accelerate investment in rental housing, besides giving a boost to the economy. He said the scheme has also evinced interest from the private entities.
The scheme will be implemented through utilizing the existing houses funded by the government which will be converted into ARHCs through  PPP model. Public agencies will also be engaged for 25 years period. The ministry has also shared a RFP model with all the states and UTs as it’s an opportunity for them to get their existing vacant houses converted into rental housig. The other model being implemented under this project is Construction-Operation-Maintenance through Private/Public entities on their own vacant and unutilized land. For the shortlisting of the entities, MoHUA will come out with Expression of Interest (EoI).
To make the offer lucrative for the entities, the central government will provide project finance under affordable housing fund as well as priority sector lending on concessional basis. The state and UT governments will also provide 50 per cent additional FAR free of cost and single window approval in 30 days. Not only this, but they will also provide trunk infrastructure facility and municipal charges would be levied at par with residential property.
Puri also unveiled a national report on ANGIKAAR on the occasion. A campaign for change management for PMAY (U), ANGIKAAR benefits through a 3C strategy that includes Convergence, Community Engagement and Communication. The event was also attended by MoHUA Secretary Durga Shanker Mishra.
